When "Old Age" Really Was Old Age
Examples of ancient longevity:
"When Adam had lived a hundred and thirty years, he became the father of a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. The days of Adam after he became the father of Seth were eight hundred years; and he had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died." [see The Line of Seth]
"When Seth had lived a hundred and five years, he became the father of Enosh. Seth lived after the birth of Enosh eight hundred and seven years, and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years; and he died."
"When Enosh had lived ninety years, he became the father of Kenan. Enosh lived after the birth of Kenan eight hundred and fifteen years, and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years; and he died."
"When Kenan had lived seventy years, he became the father of Mahalalel. Kenan lived after the birth of Mahalalel eight hundred and forty years, and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Kenan were nine hundred and ten years; and he died."
"When Mahalalel had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of Jared. Mahalalel lived after the birth of Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred and ninety-five years; and he died."
"When Jared had lived a hundred and sixty-two years he became the father of Enoch. Jared lived after the birth of Enoch eight hundred years, and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years; and he died."
"When Enoch had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of Methuselah. Enoch walked with God after the birth of Methuselah three hundred years, and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him."
"When Methuselah had lived a hundred and eighty-seven years, he became the father of Lamech. Methuselah lived after the birth of Lamech seven hundred and eighty-two years, and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years; and he died."
"When Lamech had lived a hundred and eighty-two years, he became the father of a son, and called his name Noah, saying, "Out of the ground which The Lord has cursed this one shall bring us relief from our work and from the toil of our hands." Lamech lived after the birth of Noah five hundred and ninety-five years, and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years; and he died."
"After Noah was five hundred years old, Noah became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth." (Genesis 5:1-32 RSV) [see The Sons Of Noah]
How Was It Possible?
God made it possible. God is God; He can do whatever He wants.
Almighty God has the power to create humans from the lifeless soil, and has the power to raise humans back to life after they have died. Compared to creation and resurrection (see also Resurrections), having humans live to a great old age, while they were already living, would seem the simplest of the three tasks.
When the time came that such long-lived humans no longer served God's purpose, He decreed it so: "Then The Lord said, "My Spirit shall not abide in man for ever, for he is flesh, but his days shall be a hundred and twenty years." (Genesis 6:3 RSV). Not coincidentally, the record age for humans today is right at the 120 year level, exactly as God said in Genesis.
But Why So Long At First?
The Bible doesn't say. The most obvious possible reason is faster population growth, starting from just two people - in order to have larger families, they would naturally have to live longer. Preservation of knowledge in a new world, before writing was invented, or in wide use, is another. In societies that had no written records, the death of an elder was regarded to them then much like the burning of a library would seem to us now.
Fact Finder: Who was the most long-lived human on record?
Genesis 5:27
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This Day In History, September 8
1565: Spanish explorers founded the first permanent European settlement in what is today the United States.
1664: The Dutch surrendered New Amsterdam to the British, who renamed it New York after the Duke of York.
1760: The French surrendered Montreal to British forces.
1883: The Northern Pacific Railroad across the United States was completed.
1900: A hurricane with winds of 120 mph and a following tidal wave at Galveston, Texas, killed at least 8,000 people and destroyed over 2,500 buildings in the city.
1944: Germany began the V-2 rocket bombing of Britain.
1945: Korea was partitioned by the United States and the Soviet Union.
1945: Hideki Tojo, Japanese prime minister during most of the Second World War, attempted suicide rather than face a war crimes tribunal. The attempt failed and he was later convicted and hanged.
1974: President Gerald Ford granted former President Richard Nixon a full pardon for any crimes that he may have committed while in office.